Experimental study on the solvent regeneration of a CO2-loaded MEA solution using single and hybrid solid acid catalysts

The performance of a hybrid solid acid catalyst consisting of a physical mixture of γ‐Al2O3 and H‐ZSM‐5 in terms of the rate and heat duty for solvent regeneration (i.e., CO2 stripping) of a CO2‐rich MEA solution was compared with the individual performance of γ‐Al2O3, H‐ZSM‐5, and H‐Y solid acid catalysts using MEA (2–7 mol/L), with initial CO2 loading of 0.5 mol CO2/mol MEA at 378 K. It was observed that any catalyst significantly decreased the energy required for CO2 regeneration. The performance of the catalysts investigated ranked as follows: γ‐Al2O3/H‐ZSM‐5 = 2/1 > γ‐Al2O3 > H‐ZSM‐5 > H‐Y if the process is in the lean CO2 loading region whereas it was H‐ZSM‐5 > γ‐Al2O3/H‐ZSM‐5 = 2/1 > γ‐Al2O3 > H‐Y if the process is in the rich CO2 loading region. These results highlight the joint dependence on Brønsted/Lewis acidity and mesopore surface area of heat duty for solvent regeneration. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 62: 753–765, 2016